France's Sarkozy hopes to cement comeback as party votes for leader

November 29, 2014 1:15 PM

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PARIS (Reuters) - Nicolas Sarkozy's hopes of running for a new French presidential term in 2017 faced a crucial first test on Saturday as members of his crisis-ridden conservative UMP party voted for a new leader.

The online vote, which the former head of state is expected to win, was slowed on Friday evening by a cyber attack on the election web site, but voting continued on Saturday and a result was expected in the evening.